Wax Ribbon
Wax ribbon is used in thermal label printers and formulated to print barcodes in picket fence or ladder orientation on coated paper material such as Semi-gloss, Transfer & Vellum. Resin enhanced formulations of the cost effective wax ribbon print up to 200mm per second and provide superior abrasion and chemical resistance when compared with standard wax ribbons.
Compatible Printers: Zebra, Datamax, Argox, Citizen, Intermec, Sato
Wax/Resin Ribbon
Waxes and resins are mixed together to produce ribbons that show improved scratch and smear resistance, as well as improved solvent and heat resistance over wax ribbons. Wax/resin ribbons can be used on a wide range of label stocks, but are particularly good matches for coated papers and coated synthetics such as Kimdura®. Typical applications include bin location labels, and labeling for horticultural and health care applications.
Compatible Printers: Zebra, Datamax, Argox, Citizen, Intermec, Sato
Resin Ribbon
Resin ribbons offer the highest degree of scratch resistance. They are also resistant to a wide range of solvents and can be used in applications in which very high temperatures are encountered. Resin ribbons are designed to adhere to pre-treated polyester, polyimide, polypropylene, and polyethylene labels. Typical applications include agency recognized labeling, circuit board labeling, and labeling of chemical drums.
Compatible Printers: Zebra, Datamax, Argox, Citizen, Intermec, Sato
Near Edge Ribbon
Near edge thermal transfer ribbons are specifically designed for printing at high speed while still producing crisp, clean, sharp-looking barcodes for a wider variety of substrate materials.
Thermal transfer printing
A digital printing process in which material is applied to paper (or some other material) by melting a coating of ribbon so that it stays glued to the material on which the print is applied. It contrasts with direct thermal printing where no ribbon is present in the process. It was invented by SATO corporation. The world’s first thermal transfer label printer SATO M-2311 was produced in 1981
Flat Head vs. Near Edge Technology
Flat Head
Flat head printers have a traditional print head that can print images in resolutions from 203 to 600 dots per inch (DPI). Ribbons are in contact with the printed substrate for a short distance after passing the heating element. These models will print at speeds up to 12 inches per second (IPS).
Near Edge
In contrast, near edge printers with floating print heads will run at speeds of up to 26 IPS. Ribbons for these printers are in contact with labels only for an instant prior to the peel point, requiring a special formulation engineered for quick release of ink from the base PET film. A floating print head means not having to make adjustments for various media thicknesses, but image resolution for these printers is limited 200 to 300 DPI.
